Roundup: Mulford, Blaney highlight area runners at state meet

Saturday

Nov 17, 2012 at 12:01 AMNov 18, 2012 at 12:17 AM

A pair of area runners had impressive efforts on Saturday morning in the FHSAA State Cross Country Meet.

Staff report

TALLAHASSEE — A pair of area runners had impressive efforts on Saturday morning in the FHSAA State Cross Country Meet.Vanguard’s Elizabeth Mulford placed 11th overall in Class 3A, while Belleview’s Catherine Blaney took 14th at Apalachee Park.Mulford, the MCIAC champion, finished with a time of 18:44 to cap an impressive sophomore season.Blaney, a senior, was able to defeat Wiregrass Ranch senior and Harvard commit Nikita Shah, a runner she had battled against in the postseason in finishing out a stellar prep career. Other area female runners to compete at the meet included: Belleview’s Melody Yero (50th in Class 3A/19:58) and St. John Lutheran’s Ashley Gallinaro (66th in Class 1A/21:13).Dunnellon’s Victor Chicas, the area’s lone male qualifier for the state meet, was 93rd in Class 2A with a time of 17:49.Girls basketballMONTVERDE ACADEMY 51, VANGUARD 44: At Vanguard, the Knights came up just short at home on Saturday afternoon but received a solid effort from Alex Wilhelm who poured in 18 points and grabbing three rebounds while going four-for-five from three-point range. Also playing well for Vanguard was Ta’Nayia Johnson (8 points, 9 rebounds), Canisha LeCorn (8 points, 8 rebounds) and Keyerra Overstreet (6 points).The Knights (1-1) will play at St. John on Nov. 24 at 6 p.m.Boys basketballLAKE WEIR 68, MEADOWBROOK 41: At The Villages, participating in The Villages Preseason Classic, the Mustangs were led by Sean Denton (9 points, 9 rebounds), Monty Wilson (6 points, 5 rebounds, 3 steals) and Jaren Dew (7 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists).Meadowbrook will play First Academy (Leesburg) on Nov. 27 at 7:30 p.m.TRINITY CATHOLIC 81, THE VILLAGES 41: At The Villages, the Celtics had five players in double figures in route to their preseason victory over the Buffaloes on Saturday. Leading the way for Trinity Catholic was Sam Ergle who scored 14 points to go with eight rebounds and six assists. Noah Schaffer also scored 14 points, while Justin Williams recorded 14 points, four rebounds and two steals for the Celtics.Trinity Catholic will host North Marion in its regular season opener on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.HARMONY 71, NORTH MARION 41: At SAINTS “Above the Rim” Preseason Classic (St. John), the Colts were led by Fredrick Goins with 13 points and Marvin Wilkerson with seven points.North Marion will play at Trinity Catholic on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.ST. JOHN 64, DUNNELLON 53: At SAINTS “Above the Rim” Preseason Classic (St. John), Jordan Smith led the Saints with 19 points, seven rebounds and two assists, while teammate Glen Owen added 18 points, five rebounds and two assists. St. John was also led by Jordan Bates who scored 14 points and pulled down six rebounds.The Saints will play Riverband Academy on Tuesday at College of Central Florida at 5 p.m.WrestlingMARION COUNTY SCHOOLS REPRESENT AT CITRUS DUAL MEET: At Citrus, under first year head coach Gary Hall, the Rattlers finished second in the tournament going 4-1 in the duals. Outstanding wrestlers for Belleview included Brandon Lea, Xavier Randolph, Tyler Hunt, Josanty Vega, Tieler Robinson, Quinton McElroy, Colby Oliver, Ty Helsel, Landon Delk and Ben Boles.Lake Weir was also there and competed well with a young team, though their record in dual meets didn’t show it. Matt Brunelle, Tyler Bullard, Oscar Tramantano, Khari Thornhill, Brandon Soter, Kristen Hagen, Logan Rado and Nick Levay paced the Hurricanes.The Rattlers will wrestle again on Nov. 28 in a tri-meet with West Port and Forest. Lake Weir will compete on Wednesday at Flagler Palm Coast High School.